First residential sector contract win for McAvoy

Dungannon-based offsite construction specialist McAvoy Group has been awarded its first contract in the residential sector following its expansion into offsite housing.The £4.7m contract for Clanmil Housing Association will be the first offsite housing scheme to be built in Northern Ireland. The use of the McAvoy offsite housing is expected to reduce the build programme by about 60 per cent.Designed by Knox Clayton Architects, the Joymount development in Carrickfergus will provide 40 homes to help address the severe shortfall in social and affordable housing in Northern Ireland.It will feature eight one- and two-bedroom apartments for couples and families; 17 two-bedroom apartments for active older people, and 12 two-bedroom houses for families. There will also be three dtached bungalows specifically designed for individual families with complex needs.The scheme is due for completion in spring 2019.The homes will be manufactured and fully fitted out offsite at The McAvoy Group’s production centre in Lisburn. The business will manufacture 111 steel-framed building modules and the homes will be installed on site, complete with bathrooms, kitchens, partitions and glazing.The Joymount scheme is located close to the 12th century Carrickfergus Castle. A historic wall forms one of the boundaries to the site which McAvoy will undertake works to preserve.